Ridley’s Racer – Cave Snake – Not Venomous

Length: up to 2.5 meters. I have caught eight of these, all of them under 2.25 meters.

Range: Chumpon, Thailand, south to border of Thailand-Malaysia

Habitat: Usually caves, though at times found outside caves. Recently I found a number of them in a bungalow at a nature resort and an empty wooden cabin in a rubber plantation. Then someone wrote me to ID one that was climbing around the limestone cliffs in Krabi.

Active Time? The snake is mainly nocturnal. They are active during the day only after heavy rainfall, or inside caves.

Food: Bats, birds, and maybe even rats if they happened to be on the ground.

Venom Toxicity: None. Member of rat snake group – so their saliva probably contains venom, but they have no venom injecting fangs in the front or rear. They have rows of teeth in the upper jaw, but very small – less than 1/4th inch long.

Offspring: Nothing known – still updating this article.

Notes: These are often found in Thailand caves, they are excellent wall climbers. A Buddhist monk walked me through some pitch black caves at a temple with a cave in Southern Thailand and showed me this amazingly colored Ridley’s Racer pictured above. This non-venomous snake, part of the rat snake family was calm and let me take video with the camera just 12 inches from her head. Ridley racer snakes hang on cave walls and snatch flying bats out of the air.

All posts by Vern Lovic. Amateur herpetologist roaming about Thailand on field herping tours to find king cobras, kraits, vipers, coral snakes, and other snakes native to Thailand. FYI - Thailand has over 200 snake species with more than 70 of them venomous and dangerous to humans.

There was a snake on my front porch the other day. I was out of country on business; my wife thought it was a cobra because it reared its head about a foot from the ground and had a small hood. The snake was cornered by my huskies and then removed by my staff; my wife said that the snake went for one of the huskies but i think if it had been a cobra the husky would have been in trouble. it was about 1.5m in length and “black” (according to a thai which basically means any dark colour)this snake had a barely visibly green line from head to tail. My staff said these snakes are quite common in the moo baan (Muang Ake project, Pathum Thani) We are next to a small lake that contains several water monitors. I am curious to know if you have an idea of what this snake was and also if there are cobras or Kings in this area? as it would present considerable danger to the dogs. many thanks.

I have seen Ridleys racers several times in caves in northern Thailand – Tham Tub Tao, 40 km north of Chiang Dao, Chiang Mai province. Very definitely this snake – about 1 – 2 metres. I am a Biology teacher!
Thought you might be interested that they are NOT only found south of Chumphon.

Last month I went to Mae Lana Cave in the extreme north-west of Thailand, and saw what I’m pretty sure was a Ridley’s racer, well inside the cave in complete darkness. I have some photos (not very good, taken with my phone in a waterproof bag) – if you want to email me I could send them to you.

Cobras in the HOUSE!

Welcome to Thailand Snakes…

Thailand has 200+ snake species with over 60 of them - venomous.
I created this site as a way to educate Thais and visitors to Thailand about snakes. Many people kill the snakes they see in Thailand, while in many cases - they are non-venomous and completely harmless. With this site I hope to give people a better idea what is harmful and what isn't.

Browse the many snake photos and videos here so you can identify snakes you see on your porch, in your bed, or underfoot.

If you have been bitten by a snake - go to a hospital FIRST. Don't waste time looking it up on the internet. With some snakes you need to have medical help as fast as possible. With others you have some time. I know a Thai man whose brother died in less than 10 minutes from a snake bite.

There are venomous (some say 'poisonous' erroneously) snakes everywhere in Thailand. Friends have had cobras in their kitchen, and others had kraits in the garage. Vipers love bushes and trees near water and walkways.

Bookmark this site so you can quickly identify snakes you have seen. Notice the variety of venomous and non-venomous snakes in Thailand - and realize that they come in all sizes, shapes, colors, and patterns.